


The Great Restaurant Escape

by gwaine_loves_apples



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Bad date turned good, Fluff, Humor, Kissing, M/M, Modern AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-10
Updated: 2020-07-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:54:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25180486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gwaine_loves_apples/pseuds/gwaine_loves_apples
Summary: Modern Day AU-Merlin is a bartender at a trendy restaurant. He meets an unusually attractive customer in a surprisingly typical situation.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 108





	The Great Restaurant Escape

“Uh hey man, whatchya doin’ there?” Merlin walked out of the bathroom stall to see a very muscular grown man, sitting on one edge of the sink and putting his feet on the other. His blonde hair reflected both the fluorescent lights only a few feet above him and the phone a few inches away from his nose. He was sitting there as if he was in his living room. Customers these days. Merlin tried to ignore the fact that he had just cleaned this place a few hours ago. 

The man looked up confused, as if he was being interrupted. Merlin just raised a judgmental eyebrow. 

“Sorry? Oh! Oh yeah.” He hopped off from his precarious perch between the sink and the wall, pocketing the phone that he was clinging onto for dear life moments ago. After glancing around the bathroom he awkwardly scratched the back of his head and then settled by leaning his back against the wall. He cleared his throat and decided to pull out his phone again, obviously not wanting to prolong the awkward interaction. Merlin couldn’t help himself, 

“Date go that bad?” Merlin walked over to the sink and started washing his hands. Arthur looked up in surprise.

“Ah- yeah, actually, it’s been horrible. How did you know?” 

“You’re not the first person to hide in this bathroom mate.” Merlin chuckled as he finished washing and flicked the water off his hands into the sink. 

“I am not hiding,” he sniffed indignantly. “I just am waiting for my cab.” He waved his phone in the air. Normally Merlin would have just left the customer to his own business, but this man was _very_ attractive, and apparently, single. 

“Alright fine, but while you wait, could I get you a drink?” Merlin couldn’t help but blush. Flirting was never his strong suit. Especially with men of his stature… his? Shit.

“Sorry- what was your name?” Merlin deeply regretted that this question had come second. Flirting _really_ wasn’t his strong suit. Luckily, the man huffed out a laugh of amusement while a smile spread across his lips. His eyes flicked up and down Merlin a few times, not even trying to hide his shameless observations. Merlin wore his more casual work clothes that night, a fitted black shirt with very dark wash jeans, which helped show off his tall and lean frame. 

“Arthur, and really I would love to take you up on the offer, ah-” he raised his eyebrows in anticipation.

“Merlin.”

“Merlin,” Arthur smiled, “but I am still hiding from my-date-from-hell out there.” Merlin couldn’t help but feel a jolt of happiness hearing Arthur say his name. 

“Right, well we will just have to escape then.” He had just finished his shift and was not about to let this boy slip out from his fingers. 

“And how do you plan on doing that?” 

Merlin reached into his bag and pulled out his apron along with some eyeliner (never mind why he had that on hand) and grinned. 

***

By the time the pair had made it through the restaurant both had to bite their lips to hold back their laughter. Merlin had managed to put Arthur in his apron, slick down his hair into a horrible middle part, and draw a fake mustache above his perfect lips. As pathetic as his disguise was, he managed to escape the restaurant while avoiding the attention of a rather haughty blonde woman who moodily picked at her salad. When they hit the sidewalk outside they burst into laughter. 

“That,” Arthur gasped for air, “was insane.” Another fit of giggles ensued. “What if she had seen us?” They moved to the side of the restaurant building, hands on their knees and out of breath. 

Merlin just held up two comically large menus in the air in response while he continued to laugh.

“I have never felt more undignified in my life.” Arthur ran his hand through his hair to get rid of that awful part. His hair stuck up in all sorts of directions. How he managed to get the eyeliner off of the top of his lip with only a few swipes of his thumb, Merlin would never know. 

“Oh I doubt that, you took onto this plan way too quickly for it to be your first.”

“Oh shut up Merlin.”

Merlin couldn’t help but smile at Arthur. They had met only a few minutes ago, but he could feel the butterflies in his stomach as their shoulders bumped into each other. 

“Why did you want to escape that date in the first place?” Merlin couldn’t believe that he was asking this just now. The woman had been very beautiful, although a bit mean looking.

“My father set me up with her. Her father owns an insurance company.” Arthur sighed.

“Oh.” Merlin couldn’t help but think about his meager wage.

“She’s not really my type.” Arthur leaned over and bumped their shoulders again. His eyes flitted across Merlin’s face. 

“Oh?”

“Women… aren’t really my type.” Jesus christ this man was as bad at flirting as Merlin was. 

“My type is men who hide in bathrooms to avoid emotional conflict. Much like damsels in distress.” Merlin started laughing again.

“I was _not_ in distress, nor am I a damsel.” Arthur playfully shoved Merlin in the shoulder and took a step closer to him. 

“Could have convinced me,” Merlin raised his eyebrows in a defiant way. He took a step closer to Arthur, invading his personal space. He could hear Arthur’s quick intake of breath. Next thing Merlin knew, Arthur had grabbed his shoulders and pulled him into a kiss. Once Merlin realized what was going on he threw his arms around Arthur’s neck and deepened the kiss. Arthur’s arms wrapped around Merlin’s waist and pulled his body flush with his. Before Merlin started properly making out with his new acquaintance in the alley next to the restaurant, he pulled back and looked into Arthur’s wide eyes. 

“So how about that drink?” Arthur must have read his mind. Merlin could tell that this was the start to a very good evening.

**Author's Note:**

> Writing this has made me really appreciate all modern day aus! It's so difficult to keep true to the characters when I can't rely on the setting or their jobs/roles from the show. If you have any tips, I would love to hear them!  
> (Also, I apologize for how many details in here are strikingly similar to BBC's Sherlock?? I wrote this at like 2am in one go and apparently my subconscious was on a mission lol)


End file.
